


Love and Learning

by aramisinaskirt (SilverMillennium_QueenNeptune)



Series: Musketeer March 2021 [3]
Category: The Musketeers (2014)
Genre: Inspired by Music, Love, Male Friendship, Multi, Musketeer March 2021, Prompt Fill, Song: Steal Love (Marc O'Reilly), Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-16 09:35:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29822961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverMillennium_QueenNeptune/pseuds/aramisinaskirt
Summary: Porthos is frightened by the idea of a benefactress, but not for the reasons one might expect. Fleeting though it may have been, what he found with Alice taught him more than he'll ever admit.
Relationships: Alice Clerbeaux/Porthos du Vallon, Aramis | René d'Herblay & Porthos du Vallon
Series: Musketeer March 2021 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2190600
Kudos: 6





	Love and Learning

**Author's Note:**

  * For [privateerwrites](https://archiveofourown.org/users/privateerwrites/gifts).



> Credit for the prompt list goes to @privateerstudies on tumblr https://privateerstudies.tumblr.com/post/643477557598142464/musketeer-march

Porthos had never intended for things to get so complicated. He’d already lost one great love, and he wasn’t certain his heart could take losing another. That was the real reason he had balked at the prospect of fighting a Red Guard. He had known that a benefactress was the only way any of them would compete. Aramis might be able to hop from one woman’s bed to the next without a second thought, but for Porthos it had always been different. He hated for a woman to think he was using her. There was nothing worse than a man who made fools of women for his own pleasure.

If he wanted to participate in this tournament, however, there were no other options. He convinced himself that he wouldn’t need to seduce the poor woman, but he would need to give her something in return for her aid. Porthos had no qualms about offering himself to a woman of means if it got him where he needed to be. It used to be that easy; a spur of the moment decision that meant he was safe and warm for an evening or maybe a few if his lady friend liked him enough to allow it. He had never desired much more.

Or, at least he hadn’t desired much more before meeting Alice. She was a beautiful woman, both physically and intellectually. Porthos didn’t need conversation with her to know that, despite the fact that he relished every moment in her company. She made him want to be better. He could spend hours at her feet without blinking if she wished him there. When he was with Alice, it wasn’t about how strong he was, or how quickly he could get her into bed, or even the fact that he was a Musketeer (despite Aramis’ teasing to the contrary, which Porthos had learned to ignore; his friend had a one-track mind where women were concerned, albeit with a few rare exceptions). They were both used to taking love where they could find it. But his fear over Alice was grounded deeper. He cared about her and he didn’t want her to turn into a repeat of Flea. He could not go through that again. Then, one day, Alice stunned him with a question.

“Do you think you’ll ever take a wife, Porthos?” The question stopped him in his tracks. It wasn’t so much that he hadn’t thought of it. But the inquiry, the weight of it, and coming from her, well. . . He was still learning that she was not any ordinary woman. She was bright, witty, and so far above him that it hurt. Alice placed her hand in his, lacing their fingers together. She liked the feel of him, the rough contrast of his skin against hers. For her, this was new and exciting. The gleam in her eyes told him that she had never done something like this in her life.

“Never mind. Forget that I asked. I should know better.”

“No. I was going to answer you, I just—you surprised me with the question, Alice. Truthfully, I don’t know. I want to, but this life is. . . Not for the faint of heart. I’m a Musketeer, a soldier. I can’t see giving that up. Not until I have no other options.”

“What if I told you that I—.”

“Please, don’t. Don’t make any grand promises on my account. We can let this happen slowly. But you need to understand. I am not a man of means. I can’t give you. . . Well. . . This. Any of what you’re used to.”

“Maybe I already had all of that. Maybe I need something different. Could you give me love?”

_Yes. God, yes._ He had been so used to stealing whatever he could get, that she was a shock to his system. For once in his life, he had the opportunity to take something freely, without someone coming after him and calling him a thief. The kiss came out of nowhere, the pressure of her against his armor. It was warm, almost desperate. He didn’t know if this would last, but he had to try, or he would regret it for the rest of his life.

“Could you be content to be the wife of a soldier? Because I cannot see myself as anything else. I’m telling you this now. If you can’t, then please, let me go.”

“If it meant the two of us being happy together, I might be persuaded to try.” If they could make it work, Porthos knew one thing for certain. He could finally leave behind the past that had nearly broken him; cost him friends and allies. He might have been a thief, but the one thing he never needed to steal, well, that was love.


End file.
